Our Past Shows
Spring Awakening
2017
EPE’s inaugural production, Spring Awakening, was the first production ever produced at the brand-new Performing Institute of Minnesota. Construction was still underway when auditions were held! We had a vision to create an experience that provided a professionally-minded, fun, and high-quality product for performers in the middle of their educational journey - ages 16-24. A company of performers from across the metro helped bring the killer score and the powerful story about teenagers in 19th-century Germany to life. The catalyst for the EPE, this production helped us establish the unique culture of the EPE - one that is rooted in community, ensemble, and high-quality productions for this age group.
The Rocky Horror Show
2018
The Rocky Horror Show is a cult-classic made most-popular by the iconic film. The EPE stage production explored the space between camp and popular culture. Our ensemble was encouraged to consider and question how the production could obliterate traditional norms of society and of musical theatre. We mindfully engaged with our LGBTQ+ communities in all aspects of production, particularly in regards to our portrayal of the show’s lead character. This engagement set the tone for how we seek to partner with our communities moving forward in creating art that is inclusive, ground-breaking, and also high-quality.
HAIR: The American Tribal Love Rock Musical
2019
Conceived during the anti-Vietnam War peace movement of the late 1960s, HAIR was a radical piece of protest theatre that shocked and liberated audiences with its blazon depiction of drugs, race relations, and sex. EPE’s production of HAIR was a brilliant explosion of freaked-out, mish-mash, psychedelic babble that generated challenging, yet critical discussion among our EPs. As a company, we grappled with the discomfort of engaging in a work that simultaneously criticizes and satirizes racism, discrimination, war, violence, pollution, sexual repression, and other societal evils. The production became a valuable learning experience for our community and was the catalyst for developing our values and mission as a company.
PiPPiN
2021
In 2021, after taking a summer off in the midst of the pandemic, we sought to produce a show that not only COULD be presented outside, but would benefit from it, and Pippin was the title that floated to the surface. Our production examined the dark side of artists' pursuit of the "extraordinary." We crafted a world in which, in the wake of COVID, a group of young performers created Morning Glow - a travelling troupe dedicated to creating the greatest live performances of all time. We sought to explore the questions, "what makes our art meaningful and extraordinary? How do we find fulfillment in our artistic identity?" Set against the night sky, our production utilized the forested parking lot location as a character of its own, complete with the occasional eagle flying overhead just as Pippin sang about his Corner.
Ride the Cyclone
2023
RIDE THE CYCLONE gots an EPE treatment July 28 - August 7, 2022 at the Performing Institute of Minnesota in Eden Prairie. The musical explores the lives of six teenagers from a Canadian chamber choir are cut short in a freak accident aboard a roller coaster. A mechanical fortune-teller invites each to tell their story of a life interrupted—offering the chance to come to terms with their fates. At once quirky and smart, edgy and beautiful, RIDE THE CYCLONE ultimately reveals the resilience of the human spirit in spite of senseless tragedy.
